Earthquake Near Iran-Iraq Border Killed Hundreds, Injures Thousands

At least 452 are dead, and thousands more are injured, after an earthquake struck near the border of Iran and Iraq.

According to the New York Times, the earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.3, striking the region late Sunday night. CNN reports the epicenter was in a rural region of Iran, just south of the Iraqi city of Halabja. Aftershocks from the quake reached as far as Pakistan, Lebanon, Kuwait and Turkey. The earthquake is reportedly the deadliest of the year, surpassing the September quake in Mexico city.

The New York Times reports at least 7,370 were injured in Iran, along with an additional 535 people in Iraq. The Times reports photos from the region show collapsed buildings, destroyed cars, and people sleeping in the streets for fear of aftershocks. According to the Guardian, the Iranian Red Crescent indicated more than 70,000 people are in need of emergency shelter as a result of the earthquake. Electricity has been cut off in some Iranian and Iraqi cities because of the potential for aftershocks. A hospital near Darbandikhan was damaged and had no power, which was the hardest hit area on the Iraqi side of the border.

Three days of mourning were announced in the Iranian province of Kermanshah, which was the hardest hit according to the Guardian.

The death toll from the quake is expected to rise, officials say.

“There are still people under the rubble. We hope the number of dead and injured won’t rise too much, but it will rise,” Kermanshah’s deputy governor, Mojtaba Nikkerdar, said, the Guardian reports.